Noted Beatles Expert Explains Continuing Appeal of the Fab Four

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With the release of The Beatles: Rock Band game and the remastered Beatles catalog, it's almost impossible to avoid this new wave of Beatlemania. But why are the Fab Four still so popular, nearly 40 years after their break-up? Author, speaker, and Beatles authority Bill Stainton says it comes down to three things: the mob, the mythology, and the music.

Bill Stainton

The 5 Best Decisions the Beatles Ever Made: A Handbook for 'Top of the Charts' Success

Seattle, WA (PRWEB)September 8, 2009

With the release of The Beatles: Rock Band game and the remastered Beatles catalog, it's almost impossible to avoid this new wave of Beatlemania. But why are the Fab Four still so popular, nearly 40 years after their break-up? Bill Stainton, professional speaker and author of "The 5 Best Decisions the Beatles Ever Made: A Handbook for 'Top of the Charts' Success", says it comes down to three things: the sheer number of Baby Boomers who consider the Beatles to be the soundtrack of their youth (the mob), the fact that the band has achieved legendary, icon-like status (the mythology), and, ultimately, the stunning quality of the songs themselves (the music).

Stainton, who helps organizations incorporate the secrets of the Beatles success into their own businesses, believes that it's the combination of these three elements that accounts for the band's unabated appeal.

First, the mob. "In any generation," says Stainton, "it's the music you listen to between the ages of 16 and 24 that becomes your musical 'home base' for the rest of your life. You may learn to appreciate many other types of music, but by and large, you'll always return to the songs you were listening to during these crucial eight years. Well, the first wave of Baby Boomers--which was and still is the biggest generation ever--was born in 1946, which means their crucial eight years were between 1962 and 1970, precisely the years when the Beatles were active. For these and future Boomers, the Beatles will always be huge."

Secondly, the Beatles have now achieved near-mythical status. "America likes icons," Stainton says. "From the Wild West to the Kennedys, we have a fascination with things we perceive to be 'larger-than-life,' and the Beatles certainly fit into that category. Even though the Fabs are quintessentially English, it was their appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show and their subsequent 'conquering' of America that put them on the world map, so we've adopted them as our own. And even though John Lennon famously said that he didn't believe in the 'myth' of the Beatles, the rest of us not only believe in it--we're infatuated with it."

In the end, though, it really comes down to the music. The Pew Research Center recently found that every age group from 16 through 64 listens to rock & roll more than any other type of music--and that the Beatles rank in the top four among every age group. "The strength of the Baby Boomers and the power of the Beatles' mythology can't account for this," says Stainton, "so ultimately it comes down to one thing: the songs. They're just that good." The Beatles took music well beyond the boundaries of traditional pop music, but still kept it accessible. "One of the ways they did this," Stainton adds, "was by making sure that, no matter how far out their songs may have been, they were always grounded by a strong melody. Simply put, the Beatles' songs are very singable, and that crosses all generations."